Heddle



Oct. 5, 1954 P. c. CONSOLETTI HEDDLE Filed Aug. 25, 1952 INVENTOR. PAUL C. CONSOLETTI A TTORNE Y Patented Oct. 5, 1954 HEDDLE :Paul C. Consoletti, Milford, Mass assignor to Draper Corporation, Hopedale, Mass., a corporation of Maine Application August 25, 1952, Serial No. 306,136

Z-Ciaims.

1 This invention pertains to improvements in heddles of the type employed in loom harness mechanisms, and more specifically, to that type of heddle which .is preferably formed from flat, strip stock.

. t .is a general object of the invention to improve heddles of the type describedandto render them more adaptable for their intended purpose by forming them from strip stockinaparticular manner to develop a maximum of strength, to

lighten the structure as much as is practicable and to provide in the heddle a suitable flexibility such as will permit them to be employed advantageously with the well known drawing-inmachines which are .used for threading the warp threads through the heddles mechanically and at a relatively rapid rate.

.In .most looms the warp threads are threaded through heddles, the most satisfactory of which are formed from strip material ofsubstantially the size required to provide the greatest cross section of material which shall .be desired atany point in the heddle and the stock .is then subjected to a number .of metal working operations including punching, perforating .and shearing steps after which the material thus formed must be treated to remove burrs, andotherwise develop a relatively smooth and finished heddle which shall be usable with all types of warp threads,

especially those of trail nature and which are easily damaged in the event the heddle has .any tendency to abrade or sever these threads.

Heddles of the type described are adapted to be threaded onto supporting bars or .rods which in some instances aresustained by hooks intermediate their ends which are sustained in the lendstrutsof the harness frames. In other cases these :heddle supporting rods are sustained .by means which :permit the heddle ends to slide unrestrictedly in the event they are of C-shape,

:mortised ends of that type being well known *to those skilled in the art. In either event, the

lheddle comprises a centrally disposed portion whichis perforated to providea warp eye through which the warp threads may be passed-and intermediate or shank portions extending from this central part of the heddle to the mortised'ends. In most instances, these shanks have been sheared at one or both sides to lighten the structure and to permit more ready flexing f the heddle as, when the warp threads are inserted through the eyes of the heddles by means of a drawing-in machine, the central portion of the heddle must be so disposed'that a needle'may be passed through the 'eye, this requiring that the .entire structure be flexed or twisted on its own axis throughout several degrees. In other instances the heddles have been lightened and rendered more flexible by perforating the strip while leaving it .of a single and uniform width throughout its entire length.

The perforation of the complete heddle structurehas given rise to certain difiiculties in that the perforation or perforations formed as slots, if they extend sufficiently clos to the mortised ends become clogged with lint when materials particularly susceptible of causing trouble in that direction are being woven. Obviously, that is something which is highly objectionable in that theadvantages .due to lowering of the weight are then lost and it becomes necessary to dislodge this lint-and clean the slots at frequent intervals.

According to the present invention, a heddle having all of :the advantages attendant upon heddlesformed from strip stock has been-realized, the flexibility provided is a maximum, and the entire structure is relatively light in weight so that high Weaving speeds may be attained without running up undue stresses in the :harness mechanism due to the inertia of that structure including the harness frameand heddles carried thereby. The central portion of each heddle is characterized by a war-p eye, also a key slot in the event the heddle is -;to be employed with .a rdrawing-in machine, and the mortised ends .by which the heddleslare mounted in the frame may .have'closed loops or may beformed with the well known .O-shaped end depending upon the type of frame and especially the heddle supporting rods "thereof. The shank portions of each heddle extending :from the central part to the mortised ends are formed along a taper, this taper start- .ing at the central portion and being developed rather gradually so that the taper terminates :at .a convenient and reasonable distance from the .mortised end and the section is preferably reduced as much as may be permitted without sacrificing strength so :that the actual dimension at the smallest point will permit .considerable flexing of the material, yet will embody that strength which maybe required.

In order further to lighten the heddle and to permit twistingor flexing along its longitudinal axis, the tapered shank .is perforated to define an elongated slot which extends from as close to the warp eye and/or key slot as .is reasonable down to a point where the shank taper has so reduced the cross section that there is little to be gained by carrying the slot'farther, and also, down to that point where in actual practice the slot, if carried farther would be susceptible to gathering lint and thus contributing to an undesired characteristic frequently experienced in heddles in which the slots are carried too close to the mortised ends. Preferably, the slots are tapered thereby to conform to the general tapered shape of the shanks themselves.

The invention will be described in greater detail by reference to the accompanying figures of drawing wherein:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a heddle constructed in accordance with the invention and having c-shaped, mortised ends.

Fig. 2 is a view showing the heddles of Fig. 1 as they appear when mounted in a harness frame, the C-shaped ends being carried on suitable supporting rods or bars.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. l but showing the invention as applied to a heddle in which the mortised ends are of closed type.

Fig. 4 is a similar view showing a modification.

Now referring to the figures of drawing, a preferred form which the invention may take has been illustrated and in Fig. 1, a heddle of the type having c-shaped mortised ends is shown. The centrally disposed portion ill is provided with a warp eye, the material at the sides of which has been bent or offset as illustrated in Fig. 2 so that when the heddle is in operating position, the thread may pass through the eye without undue friction. This central portion In extends upwardly, as illustrated, for a greater distance than downwardly merely for the purpose of accommodating a key slot I2, the purpose of which is well known to those familiar with weaving and with the mode of operation of the well known drawing-in machines and which need not be described in greater detail at this point. In the event the heddle is not to be employed with a drawing-in machine, then it need not be provided with a key slot and the centrally disposed part of the heddle may extend equally in either direction.

At either extremity of the heddle and preferably formed from material having the dimensions of the centrally disposed portion, is to be found a mortised end by means of which the heddle is maintained in operative relationship with respect to other heddles and to the harness mechanism in general. These mortised ends i3 are of general C-shape being open at one side as at l4. They embrace the heddle supporting rods [5 on which they may slide freely since these rods are held in the harness frame at their ends and by supplementary supports fixed to the rods at a point intermediate the upper and lower parts thereof and in line with the openings 14.

Between the centrally disposed portion and the mortised ends the stock from which the heddle is formed is sheared at the sides to taper from the full width at the center part to a much narrower width adjacent the mortised ends. The latter width is preferably that which will impart strength enough to the heddle, but no more than required so as to keep the weight at a minimum and flexibility at a maximum.

The wider part of these tapered shanks I6 is perforated as at I! to lighten the structure and to permit still greater ease of twisting the heddle about its longitudinal axis. The mortised ends are preferably of the same total width as the centrally disposed portion at the warp eye and these ends taper and blend into the reduced ends of the shank as shown.

The heddles are preferably symmetrical about 4 a center line through the warp eye, except for the fact that the key slot requires added material of full width and therefore the tapered shank and slot I! are slightly shorter at that end. If no key slot is provided, the ends are preferably identical.

The resulting heddle is functionally the full equivalent of any of those now in use and is light in weight and flexible in the proper direction so that it is easily accommodated to the present drawing-in machines.

The gradual taper of the shanks avoids any shoulders such as have been found objectionable since threads of some materials have been cut or abraded by shoulders on heddles of adjacent frames.

The reduction in weight is thus realized without resorting to heddle forms with sharply angled contours and without slotting the shanks adjacent the mortised end, this latter being important since openings beyond about the mid point of the shank length are all too frequently filled with lint. The openings I! are at a position where they are continuously wiped by the warp threads of heddles in adjacent harness frames during shedding and thus do not clog with lint. There is no similar tendency for slots beyond these or nearer the ends of the heddles to be self-clearing.

Now referring to Fig. 3 a similar heddle embodying the invention is shown. This heddle has like parts thereof indicated by reference numerals identical to those applied to Fig. 1, but with primes. The mortised ends are formed as closed loops rather than being C-shaped and thus are adapted for use with that class of harness frame in which slide hooks are utilized to support the bars [5 intermediate their extreme ends which are sustained within the end struts of their frames.

While it is preferred that the shearing operation to taper the heddle shanks be performed equally at each side of the stock, it is anticipated that in some instances one side may be left straight from end to end of the heddle while the shearing is all performed at the opposite side. The taper will be approximately the same, but as illustrated at Fig. 4, results from one single shearing out rather than two. The slots are then disposed angularly to the heddle center line. If desired, the shearing cuts may be taken at the same side or, as herein shown, at opposite sides so that generally considered, the heddle is symmetrical. In this Fig. 4, parts corresponding to similar parts in the other figures are denoted by like numerals with double primes.

While closed and C-shaped mortised ends are specifically disclosed, it is to be understood that other types of heddle ends may be utilized, for example, hooked ends as in U. S. Patent 2,556,468 for use with heddle supporting bars and frames such as described and illustrated in that patent.

While the same has not been shown, any of the mortised ends may be laterally curved or otherwise kinked to prevent the heddles from turning on their supporting rods throughout more than a small angular extent.

While one preferred embodiment and certain modifications of the invention have been disclosed, it is to be understood that the inventive concept may be carried out in a number of ways. The invention is, therefore, not to be limited to the precise details described, but is intended to embrace all variations and modifications thereof falling within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims.

I claim:

1. A heddle for a loom harness which comprises a centrally disposed portion in which is formed a warp eye, mortised ends for slidably mounting the heddle on supporting rods in a harness frame and, between said centrally disposed portion and mortised ends, shank portions which taper from the centrally disposed portion to a point adjacent the mortised ends, that part of each said shank portion adjacent the centrally disposed portion of the heddle being perforated to define an elongated slot which terminates in the direction of the mortised end at a point substantially midway of the tapered shank.

2. A heddle for a loom harness which comprises a centrally disposed portion in which is formed a warp eye, mortised ends for slidably mounting the heddle on supporting rods in a harness frame and, between said centrally disposed portion and mortised ends, shank portions which taper from the centrally disposed portion to a point adjacent the mortised ends, that part of each said shank'portion adjacent the centrally disposed portion of the heddle being perforated to define an elongated, tapered slot, which terminates in the direction of the mortised end at a point substantially midway of the said tapered shank.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 887,102 Lackey May 12, 1908 1,802,907 Costello et a1. Apr. 28, 1931 2,382,795 Kaufmann Aug. 14, 1945 2,426,456 Kaufmann Aug. 26, 1947 2,529,555 Kaufmann Nov. 14, 1950 2,552,487 Kaufmann May 8, 1951 

